Embarcadero’s InterBase has consistently been among the top database engines in the world — trusted enough even to be the database solution to NASA’s MARS Rover — for over 30 years. Thanks to key features such as zero-administration costs, multi-generational architecture, and a minor system footprint, InterBase distinguishes itself positively from its competition. Whether it’s silently deploying itself alongside an application, actively tracking data changes to get the upper hand in development processes, recovering data via unique disaster recovery tools, or protecting your databases using start-of-the-art data encryption protocols, InterBase lets you do all of those and a whole lot more.

How It Works

Thanks to the minuscule amount of on-disk storage and memory required to run effectively, InterBase is easily installable in minutes — the database engine also features silent deployment capabilities that allow for simultaneous installation alongside applications in the background. Whether it’s a Windows server, desktop computer, or mobile device, InterBase can be conveniently deployed onto any platform of your choice, where the on-disk, cross platform architecture minimizes deployment technicalities dramatically. The light-weight build and cross-platform support results in near-zero administration efforts and costs, while the fast, scalable, and simplistic nature makes it very easy for your employees to start supporting applications embedded with InterBase.

Actively Track Changes

Thanks to the inclusion of a patented change-tracking engine dubbed “Change Views,” InterBase now lets you actively move and track data changes, all the while being highly scalable. Change Views gives you the opportunity to see field-level change deltas both by user and device, which results in reduced network traffic while dramatically increasing the scalability of your database server and providing multiple methods to keep huge offline data caches updated with the latest information. The ability to scale up to thousands, if not millions, of users without relying on traditional tracking techniques such as triggers, timestamp columns, or log tables, result in very low CPU and storage space usage, thereby allowing you to spend system resources on other critical tasks.

Secure Data via Encryption

If you are worried about the security of your database, you no longer have to when using InterBase. With the ability to encrypt data using the 256-bit AES encryption cypher, InterBase makes it virtually impossible for hackers to infiltrate and plant malicious code or steal information. The database engine also supports the exportation of embedded applications to other countries via its Strong Encryption featurette. Protection isn’t just limited to data encryption; it also mitigates risks caused by code refactoring, where outdated restriction and data visibility rules are continuously enforced by column-level encryption. All of these security features allow you to spend less time worrying about the security and integrity of your database, to more time focusing on the research and development aspects of your applications.

Recover Data Anytime

Perhaps the most important ability integrated into InterBase is its ability to recover data that were either deleted accidentally or corrupted due to hardware and software issues — in addition to basic two-phase and in-use backups that allow for normal data backups, InterBase also features two additional functions called Journaling and Point-in-Time Recovery. With Journaling, you receive benefits of high-speed memory performances complete with data security that results from immediate writes, thereby ensuring minimal loss of data. Point-in-Time Recovery, on the other hand, allows you to rewind your database to any point in time — similar to the System Restore feature present in Windows operating systems, but much easier to deploy — so that you can get your data back regardless of what happens.

Available InterBase Editions

Embarcadero, the developers of InterBase, releases multiple versions of the database engine that should fit everyone — InterBase Desktop Edition, InterBase ToGo Edition, IBLite, and InterBase Server Edition. With InterBase Desktop Edition, you can, as a software developer, focus on creating standalone single user applications that require embedded database engines to run effectively. InterBase ToGo Edition, on the other hand, supports multiple platforms — Windows, OS X, Android, and iOS — that allow for executing applications without separate database processes, thereby using minimum system resources. IBLite should be the database engine of choice for developers looking for free solutions, but it comes without encryption or data recovery support. Finally, InterBase Server Edition is the ultimate solution when applications require thousands of users to connect seamlessly across multiple platforms.

Should I Buy It?

Looking at Embarcadero’s reputation at creating the highest quality code compilation and database applications, it’s no surprise that InterBase was the preferred choice even for NASA. Thanks in large to its fast installation capabilities and small system footprint, applications embedded with InterBase works even on systems that don’t have the greatest system resources to begin with in the first place. Its ability to deploy on multiple platforms speak volumes about the versatility of the database engine, all the while perfectly complimenting the multi-platform app development capabilities of Embarcadero’s SDKs such as Delphi and C++. Not just that, but an unprecedented level of support for the security of your databases with state-of-the-art encryption support, and unparalleled support when it comes to data recovery, definitely puts InterBase among the finest database engines worth your time and money.